{"id":18039,"date":"2026-05-21T12:59:41","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T12:59:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/2026\/05\/21\/american-who-was-on-the-hantavirus-cruise-ship-says-isolation-center-is-like-prison-nbc-news\/"},"modified":"2026-05-21T12:59:41","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T12:59:41","slug":"american-who-was-on-the-hantavirus-cruise-ship-says-isolation-center-is-like-prison-nbc-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/2026\/05\/21\/american-who-was-on-the-hantavirus-cruise-ship-says-isolation-center-is-like-prison-nbc-news\/","title":{"rendered":"American who was on the hantavirus cruise ship says isolation center is like \u2018prison\u2019 – NBC News"},"content":{"rendered":"

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A man from New York state who was on board the Hondius cruise ship<\/a> \u2014 which became the center of a hantavirus outbreak that killed three people earlier this month \u2014 reveals the Nebraska health facility where he\u2019s being quarantined feels like \u201cprison.\u201d
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The 30-year-old man, who asked not to be named due to the harassment of other passengers, told NBC News by phone that he wants to be able to quarantine at home.
Instead, he and several others are being kept at a facility in Omaha for 42 days, the full incubation period for hantavirus.
\u201cI\u2019m held here involuntarily, so in that sense it\u2019s a prison term, I mean, it\u2019s the perfectly nice prison, but I\u2019m still here involuntarily,\u201d he said.
The man said he was frustrated with \u201cthe bad faith way that they\u2019ve handled this from the beginning,\u201d and stressed that he and others understood the need to quarantine and would comply with any order; they just want to do so at home.
The Hondius arrived back<\/a> in the Netherlands on Monday after an 8,500-mile journey from southern Argentina, during which up to 11 people contracted the Andes strain of hantavirus, which can be transmitted between people.
The 18 Americans on board were flown back to the United States, eventually all ending up at the National Quarantine Unit, a specialized facility in Omaha. <\/a>
The cruise took almost 150 people on a sightseeing trip to some of the world\u2019s most remote places, but instead became the center of global attention after a Dutch passenger died on board April 11.
The passenger\u2019s body was removed at the tiny Atlantic island of St. Helena, along with his wife, who died while traveling back to the Netherlands. Another passenger, a German national, died May 2.
The New York man said he was contacted by an official from the New York Health Department upon his arrival last week to ask how they could assist him in quarantining at home.
But then, on Sunday, he says CDC staff told all 18 Americans on a Zoom call that, in fact, they could not leave. He says passengers were told that if they tried to leave, they\u2019d receive a formal quarantine order.
The man says he requested to see the legal documents prohibiting him from leaving and has since received two federal quarantine orders, reviewed by NBC News. The CDC confirmed their authenticity.
The orders say the man is \u201cmost at risk of developing symptoms during the first 21 days of the incubation period,\u201d which lasts until May 31, and that leaving before that date to isolate at home \u201cwould potentially endanger the public\u2019s health.\u201d It doesn\u2019t say whether they\u2019ll be allowed to leave after May 31.
One states that violating the order could result in \u201ca criminal fine or up to a year in jail.\u201d
The passenger stresses that all 18 Americans in the National Quarantine Unit want to remain in isolation for the full 42-day period, and some want to stay at the Omaha facility. He and others, he says, became hopeful when health officials said they could strictly isolate at home.
\u201cWhat we don\u2019t understand is why they suddenly changed their minds and told us that we can\u2019t follow the CDC guidelines and complete the quarantines at home,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m very angry about it. I don\u2019t like being lied to.\u201d
In response to the passenger\u2019s description of the facility as a \u201cprison,\u201d the CDC referred to comments by Dr. David Fitter, incident manager for the agency\u2019s hantavirus response.
\u201cIt is a fantastic facility. We really appreciate the state of Nebraska, as well as the University of Nebraska, Medical Center for everything they have done,\u201d he said May 13. \u201cThat is a great place for them to be able to do this, but also as we continue to coordinate the best monitoring for them.\u201d
NBC News Correspondent
Kailani Koenig covers politics and national affairs as a producer for NBC News.
Patrick Smith is a London-based editor and reporter for NBC News Digital.
© 2026 NBCUniversal Media, LLC<\/p>\n

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